Longshoremen strike

[Zkribbler]

So let me get this straight. Management has closed down the ports on the West Coast, costing America $1 billion per day, because they want to fill the new IT positions with non-union workers. And management is shocked, shocked that the unions will not agree to this.

This is nothing but ol' fashion union busting and corporate greed run amuck.

[MichaeltheGreat]

Well, if the "Union" in this case represents a few thousand grossly overpaid, grossly inefficient types who want to keep US port facilities productively years behind the rest of the developed world, maybe they should be "busted." Their

"Corporate greed" is on the side of keeping the ports open, regardless of who shut them, because there's far more corporations, workers, and dollars affect by loss of the goods moving through that ports, than there are due to port operations.

Both sides should have their asses kicked.

[Gatekeeper]

The post by Adam Smith is why I don't have much sympathy for the union in this particular case.

Furthermore, it's my understanding that the 1,600 or so positions that would be affected by new technology would, mostly, be reassigned to other jobs somewhere in the ports. Amazing. Basically, 1,600 people and dock management are screwing up the economy of an entire nation.

Thanks, gals and guys. I now have an inclination to automate the whole damn shebang — dockworkers and management alike — and kick the flesh-n-blood folks out for being obtuse.

Gatekeeper

[Asher]

/me whips out his baton

Let's go Union-bustin'!

[KrazyHorse]

They'd kick your ass in a heartbeat.

[Asher]

/me beats Frogger with his baton

I still get all this lefty propaganda from my old union, even though I quit over a year ago. Unions really are on the ball, aren't they?

[KrazyHorse]

Frogger would kick your ass in a heartbeat too.

And then he'd get his lefty union friends to disappear your ass....

[KrazyHorse]

Damn it, why have you been in a union and I haven't?

[notyoueither]

Sucks to be you.

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by MichaeltheGreat ... the "Union" in this case represents a few thousand grossly overpaid, grossly inefficient types ...

Tsk, tsk, such stereotyping.

Why is it always the workers who are overpaid, and never management??

How can you say the workers are inefficient, when the numbers of longshoreman have decreased by 90% since WWII while the amount of cargo unloaded has increased several fold?

If the workers are overpaid and inefficient, wouldn't the combination have caused shipping to economically collapsed?

[notyoueither]

No. they can ride on the efforts of the rest of them, if they have a choke hold, which they do.

$100K us per year and you are down trodden? Give me a freakin break!

[MichaeltheGreat]

Originally posted by Zkribbler


Tsk, tsk, such stereotyping.

Why is it always the workers who are overpaid, and never management??

How many of the "management" bodies make $89,000 a year or more? I know lots of white color management types who wouldn't mind getting paid that much.

How can you say the workers are inefficient, when the numbers of longshoreman have decreased by 90% since WWII while the amount of cargo unloaded has increased several fold?

How they do it now compared to how they did it 50 years ago isn't relevant. What is relevant is the throughput per worker in US ports compared to the throughput per worker in foreign ports.

If the workers are overpaid and inefficient, wouldn't the combination have caused shipping to economically collapsed?

Well, if you could build a trans-pacific rail link, maybe there'd be competition to shipping. It's just a parasitic cost that's added to every item shipped in either direction through the ports, and since all Pacific coast US ports are under the same system, it doesn't matter. The choice is to ship stuff through the ports and suck up the parasitic costs, or not do it at all.

[TheStinger]

won't importers just bring their stuff through canada and mexico and then the will all be out of a job.

[MichaeltheGreat]

No, unfortunately.

Some US bound cargo is being handled at Ensenada, in Baja California, Mexico, but there's 29 US ports involved, so no way Mexican and Canadian port facilities can take that much capacity.

There's also the problem with outbound cargo, which can't be diverted. The north south rail net from Mexico and Canada, and rolling stock available on it can't take the full capacity from the Mexican and Canadian ports, nor can the customs facilities at the US border handle that additional traffic.

So they have most US-Asia commerce and those dependent on it by the balls.

[Frankychan]

Well, everyone, over here in Hawaii....we're basically screwed.

Our whole lifestyle is based on shipping and this strike is screwing us over BIG TIME...I mean "bent over" screwed.

MtG, the steveadors over here (i.e, dockworkers) get paid more than the governor here--->$100,000+.

I'm a supporter of blue-collar workers, but when they get paid more than someone who has their bachelors degree, I should have a right to get pissed off.

Anyway, like I was saying, Hawaii is basically screwed by this strike and the national news aren't even covering the impact it's causing our state. I was watching World News 2nite (ABC) and they didn't even MENTION Hawaii in this strike...........Are we not a state of the Union???



You know what? This strike is FOS (fill it in w/your own nouns) and the politicians and newscasters can KMA.